A Dead Pharaoh
God is Speaking of Something That We Don’t Understand Yet
I think one of the greatest hindrances to faith is to take a Scripture that belongs to this level and interpret it on a lower level. That won’t work. “If you abide in Me and My Words abide in you, you shall ask what you will …” (John 15:7). Well, there are a lot of people who have been asking what they will, but it’s not being done unto them. Why? Isn’t the Scripture true? We don’t want to get shaken in it; we don’t want to decide, “These promises aren’t true.” We just have to assume that God is speaking of something that we don’t understand yet; in the simplicity of it, we’re going to get into it, and it’s going to be practical.
And for that reason I feel that I have to say to you, “Beware lest any man corrupt you from the simplicity that is in Christ” (II Corinthians 11:3). This thing is simple.
Let’s Never Lose The Simplicity Because This Is Where The Miracles Take Place
We don’t want to ever lose the simplicity, but we know that the truths will be expandable; it’s going to be bigger. We came up with something so simple when we said, “I’m in your heart and you’re in my heart.” We knew exactly what we were doing in it, didn’t we? And yet in every service, we’re finding out more about it. But let’s never lose the simplicity or the wonder of it, because this is where the miracles are going to take place.
You cannot make this complex, or you shift it from your spirit to your intellect; and I tell you, you don’t make it when you’re leaning on your own understanding, even about a Scripture. You make it because you are trusting in the Lord with all of your heart (Proverbs 3:5–6).
This is the way I’m going to make it. I don’t have to figure it out: “Now what is this great mystery God is trying to show, that these who are like spiritual sons to me have come and turned to bless me and to heal me?” I don’t care to analyze it. All I know is God said that you can do it, and that you are commissioned to loose me into this. And I’m taking it.
You’re Going To Be Made Perfect In One
We don’t know yet the greatness of this thing if we just cling to this one diet: “I’m in your heart.” It is one thing to say, “You’re in my heart,” and it could be just words. But if you just have the faith and you draw one another in your heart to the best that you can, it works—and believe me, you will take people in your heart just as they are. They don’t have to be worthy. They can be a little skeptical, a little bitter, because you see, you’re going to be made perfect in one. You’re not going to be made perfect and then become one. John 17 said, “That they may be made perfect in one” (verse 23). You will never make it by yourself—only up to a point. It is when you’re in me and I’m in you that the job is going to be finished.
We Are Going To Change In One Another’s Heart
We are going to change in one another’s heart. That’s where we’re going to change, and that’s where we’re going to change the world. Then the world is going to believe that the Father sent the Son because it’s all coming out in those that believe as one (John 17:21). This breaks it loose.
No Matter What Experience You Have Had Personally, You Are More Vulnerable Than If You Had Experienced The Thing Together
Somewhere along the line, the Church Age seemed to shift away from collective experiences to individual experiences. We lost something right there because Satan can attack you no matter what experience you’ve had personally. You are more vulnerable at that moment than if you had experienced the thing together. The Body was to know a collective experience. “By one Spirit are you all baptized into one Body” (I Corinthians 12:13).
We Are Eliminating Manipulation Out Of Relationships
I really believe that experiences in the Kingdom are not going to be individual experiences—whether it’s being saved or filled with the Holy Spirit or gifts and ministries—all functioning more or less on a personal level as each one seeks to be led. But we have been brought closer and closer to this submitting to one another, looking for confirmation. And now this becomes the whole peak of the thing, that you’re out to change me, not to control me. And I’m not out to control you; I’m out to change you. This is the first time, I think, that we’ve come this close to eliminating manipulation out of our relationships. I don’t want to manipulate you—I want to bless you; I want to flow life to you; I want to see you change; I want to see you rise. There’s an initiative that you will have as an individual that I don’t want to control. I want to have a flow that inspires and creates it, but you are going to move in it—a real initiative of faith, loosing things.
Now People Are Moving In To Create Me
I have been used more than people will ever know. And I think that’s one of the things that drained life out of me—it was not what I did in the spirit, but what people pulled from me that God didn’t want done. You know, they would twist Words and everything else in order to establish their position and their so-called authority over people. God did not want that. And consequently, because it was so off from what God wanted, I was drained by it. Now the process is reversed totally and completely. Three or four years have passed, but the trend has changed. Now people are not taking me to use me; people are moving into me to create me, to bring me forth.
Believe That You Are In My Heart
When you really believe in this oneness, then you can believe in the flow, the thing that we are supposed to be giving back and forth to each other. And I think that is very important. You’ve got to believe that you are in my heart; then you can believe in what you can do.
Let My People Go
We’re talking about the principalities and powers being broken. “Let My people go” was the Word that Moses brought (Exodus 5:1). “Many lords have had dominion over us, but Thou, O Lord, alone in that day will be exalted” (Isaiah 26:13; 2:11). We are getting away from the lordship of position oriented leaders and the personality cult and the whole thing. We’re getting out of that, and it’s like Pharaoh. Pharaoh and all the Egyptians finally just pleaded with the Israelites to leave; they didn’t want to live with them. But they could not give up-it was so satanic—they could not give up the idea that this was free labor. In their thinking, those people belonged to Pharaoh; they were his. And so, even when they were delivered, he relented and began to pursue them.
Even Though We Have Broken Bonds There Is A Spirit Of Bondage That Has To Come Down—That Pharaoh Spirit Just Won’t Let Go
This is what the Lord was showing me: We are free, but as we begin to march on, it’s like God allows Satan to pursue after us. And it looks like all the bonds and all of the contacts are pursuing us. They can’t get it through their heads that we’re free of them. We have broken bonds with them. And even though we have broken the bonds, there is a principality of bondage that will have to be broken and brought down, because they still think that they can captivate us, that they can come and haul us back, or if they can’t do that, they will destroy us before they will see us free. That Pharaoh spirit just won’t let go.
Why did the Israelites have to wait at the Red Sea? For only one reason—“Give Pharaoh a chance to catch up, because God is going to destroy him.”
As We Press On, God Is Drawing The Enemy Into Total Destruction
I don’t think we realize that as we press on, God is drawing the enemy into total destruction. That’s the only way He is going to convince them. They will have to finally acknowledge that they do not have a bond with us, a dominion over us; we are not their possession. The only way you have a good Pharaoh is to have a dead one, because he is going to come after you until he is drowned.
God Said, “This Bond Is Broken, Therefore I’m Going To Remove That One Who Wants To Put You Back Under Bondage”
The Passover miracle, the slaying of the first-born of all Egypt of man and beast, was very much a judgment of God. But I want you to know that if the great judgment that took place at the Red Sea had not taken place, Egypt would have immediately tried to devise a way to pursue after the Israelites in the wilderness and kill them. Pharaoh would have done that. So God said, “I’m just going to see to it that he is not going to have the opportunity to bring you back into bondage. This bond is broken, this contact is broken, and therefore I’m going to remove that one who wants to put you back under bondage.” You can’t spell bondage without first spelling bond.
“Come Out Of Her, My People”
That same thing is true in the book of Revelation where it deals with Babylon. It brings them down, destroys the kings and mighty men, but the cry is, “Come out of her, My people” (Revelation 18:4). Get out as fast as you can! Let it fall. In that day, the slain of the Lord will be multitudes (Isaiah 66:16).
What Can We Do To Overcome Pharaoh?
What can we do to work the works of God? What can we do to overcome Pharaoh? Turn and fight him? No. Walk with God in a miracle walk right through the Red Sea. Walk on with God, go forward, do exactly what you’re doing, service after service, healing after healing. This is what you’re doing. We press on with acts of our faith, believing God, which brings forth the works of God in the earth. There is no other work of God that we’re to do than to believe (John 6:28–29). Believe! And move on. Do the thing that God says to do.
God Is Jealous
The spirit of antichrist comes to make you bow down, to make you take a mark. “You can’t buy or sell, you can’t function, without having my mark on you” (Revelation 13:16–17). And God says, “I’m going to engrave you in the palm of My hand” (Isaiah 49:16). “I’m going to put My mark on your forehead” (Revelation 14:1). God says you belong to Him. God is jealous; and I tell you, God declares war on these pharaohs that want to own His people. He is not going to have it. The day is over in which we’re going to play around with people having a double ownership. You can’t have two masters. You can’t serve God and mammon (Matthew 6:24). And God is saying the same thing: “I’m not going to let another one be master over you either. If I’m the Lord over you, that’s the only lord that will have dominion over you.”
You Can Control Your Environment When You Are One In God; We Are Not Going To Be Under Bondage
If you have faith, you can say to this mountain, “Be removed, cast into the sea” (Mark 11:23). You can say to this sycamine tree, “Be uprooted, cast into the sea” (Luke 17:6, KJV). You can say it. Do you know why? Because you can control your environment when you’re one in God. We’re not doing to be under bondage. We’re not going to be controlled by circumstances; we can change it. We can throw it in the ocean. And if you want to see those things fulfilled in a natural plane, start on a spiritual plane. When the enemy comes against you, hit him. Say, “Be removed! I don’t want you in my presence. I stand in the presence of the Lord, not in yours. I listen to God; I don’t listen to you. I refuse it. I send it back! I’ll belong to no other man on earth but God alone.”
It has to be that three Hebrew children dedication: “We don’t know whether God is going to deliver us or not, but we are not bowing down. We have one Lord” (Daniel 3:16–18). I tell you, this is the spirit that is going to bring down the Pharaoh.
To Bruise Satan Under Your Feet Is God’s Fun
I’m thinking that the greatest judgments in the world are not what you see, but what takes place behind you while you follow on to know the Lord. Judgment will be one of the signs that will follow you.
Sometimes you can feel the sign of Satan coming against you, but you know that the promise is that it is God’s good pleasure to bruise Satan under your feet shortly (Romans 16:20). Just a little while—it’s inevitable. That’s God’s intention; it is His good pleasure to bruise Satan under your feet. This is God’s fun. God has a lot of fun with those pharaohs. Psalm 2:4 says that He who sits in the heavens is going to laugh at them, hold them in derision.
The Oneness That We Have In Moving Into One Another’s Hearts Is The Same Miracle That Destroys Pharaoh
It’s inevitable that we have this victory. I tell you what we really need to do; we need to get into one another’s hearts and prophesy from there. I think that must be the level of which it says, “If two or three agree, touching anything that they ask …” (Matthew 18:19). It must be the level they were talking about in Acts, where it says that they all assembled in one place and lifted up their voice; they made just one prayer, but they were all praying it (Acts 4:24–30). They either all spoke it audibly, or one person spoke it and they were all in his heart; but it was one prayer coming out. That’s what we need to do.
We’re speaking the judgments of God in the earth, but I don’t care about the judgments of God in the earth if we don’t break through first. There is no purpose if we are not delivered into what God has. The oneness that we have in moving into one another’s hearts is the same miracle that destroys Pharaoh.
“If We Are All In Christ, We Are New Creatures”—It’s Talking About This Step
When the Scripture talks about being in Christ and being new creatures, it’s talking about this step. This is where the creativity of Christ takes place. You say, “Well, I’ve been in Christ.” Yes, relatively so. But you see, the whole thing we didn’t realize is that it was just not in Christ alone, but it was in the Father, Son, and in the Holy Spirit, and in Them all indwelling in us, that the big miracle was going to take place.
God Is Penetrating Our Nature
If Christ lives in you, [then although your natural] body is dead by reason of sin and guilt, the spirit is alive because of [the] righteousness [that He imputes to you]. Romans 8:10, The Amplified Bible. You can have your spirit made alive, but that doesn’t mean the rest of you has been indwelt. The Holy Spirit comes to be the mediator of indwelling. The Holy Spirit doesn’t come in because you’re perfect; He comes in to make you perfect. He doesn’t give you gifts because you’re perfect, but He gives you gifts for the perfection of the Church. Why? Because we’re leading to the third step: And if the Spirit of Him Who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, [then] He Who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead (that’s the Father) will also restore to life your mortal … bodies through His Spirit Who dwells in you. Romans 8:11, The Amplified Bible. We’re facing the time that God is not just coming and joining Himself to us; He is penetrating our nature. We are penetrating His. We have each other in our heart.
After Awhile, We Won’t Be Able To Tell The Difference Between Our Spirits
You are in me. After awhile, we won’t be able to tell the difference between our spirits. That’s the way that Paul said it. He talked about “this one who has my thinking” (II Corinthians 12:18). They got to the place where he said, “I have the mind of Christ” (I Corinthians 2:16). And he went on to tell the Philippians that to be of one mind, standing fast together, was an evident token to the enemy of their soon defeat (Philippians 1:27–28). When the enemy would see that oneness, he would know that he was doomed.
This Is The Reality That A Lot Of You Were Looking For
Every Word on relationship and communication heading into this thing was battled and battled, and nobody could walk in it, because you can’t just agree that you’re going to walk in it; you have to be one to walk in it. One! Can you see this? There’s the miracle. There’s the creativity of God. There’s where we come in to be the new creatures. I want to break into that, fully and completely, with you. This thing is so real. This is the reality that a lot of you were looking for. Don’t think it’s a mystical thing that you can’t walk in. Just say it in your heart: “I open my heart up. I bring my brother in. I move into his heart. I move into the Lord.”
The Closest Approach We Can Have To Being Omnipresent: We Can Live In One Another’s Hearts
Move into the Lord, because you see, the Lord works it out so that He is not localized; instead, He is universalized. He can dwell in your heart—and the Father can too, and the Holy Spirit, because They have the quality of omnipresence. And because we are one spirit with the Lord, one spirit with the Father, one spirit with the Holy Spirit, and They are all one in each of us, that makes it possible. This would be the closest approach we can have to being omnipresent: We can live in one another’s heart. We can live in one another’s spirit. We can be one spirit with one another. This is the reality of the spirit world. This is the oneness!
Nobody today will carry his own load. For the Word says, “Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” It says that each man will have to shoulder his own burden; but then it goes on to explain it—bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2, 5). We share them together. We proclaim our oneness with them. I tell you, this is the simple statement of truth. Let’s not get away from the simplicity of this; it’s that simple!
Oneness Is A Miracle Impartation
The big battle has been over oneness, strangely enough, because I think Satan anticipated that this was going to happen. This oneness has been preached many places, but it has to be that someplace the fuse is lit, and it becomes the explosive thing that is going to react around the world. There are people everywhere that are ready to be a part of that explosion and that oneness.
We could not have said, “Come into my heart,” and “You are in my heart,” if we had not taken the miracle communion, and we had not had the laying on of hands. We have been working at this. We have been creating this level. It was more simple than we know. We set about to just lay hands on each other, to eat the Body and Blood of the Lord together, and we walked into one another’s hearts. It was a miracle impartation. Oneness is a miracle impartation.
Press On Through The Red Sea
Deliverance cannot be apart from judgment. We will not be delivered except at the very same time judgment will strike.
Our focus now is this: press on through the Red Sea. Our focus is not to be on the judgment. That is going to follow. We will speak it, lay it aside, go on our way. But I am going to move on in this with all my heart. It isn’t vengeance; it isn’t revenge. I never cared about that. I just want the hindrances for all of us out of the way to move into this resurrection life, into the Kingdom.
Live In The Heart Of God
The miracle that blasts us out of the flesh and selfishness and self-interest and ambition is when we live in the heart of God. We move into Him, and that’s where we change.
Visions of Judgment
The Wind of Judgment
I saw a wind blowing. It seemed like a warm south wind blowing. It did not seem to be an ominous wind, but as the wind was blowing it blew upon a whole group. They were clothed in black, with black shrouds of death on their heads. The wind blew over them and a voice came from the heavens saying, “You have preyed upon the flock. Now you shall become a prey. You shall have no defense. The wind that bloweth drieth up your strength and bringeth frustration to your spirit until your hands will hang down and your steps will falter. You will fall into the pit that you have dug, and at noonday you will stumble and not see the serpent that you laid in the path for another.”
The Unwavering Tone
I saw a great clock and it looked like a clock in a high tower like you would find in a courthouse, only it had no hands on it. I looked at it and thought, “That’s strange. How can we tell the time?” Then the clock struck. It was only one tone. The tone went on and on and on and did not stop. And so the Lord spoke, “The judgment and the destruction shall not be a thing to come upon a schedule and end, for it is loosed from the house of God against its apostates and against its Judases, against its Korahs. And the judgment does not sound and then fade out; but when God begins war with Amalek, He will have war with Amalek unto all generations” (Exodus 17:16).
As I inquired in this, I thought, “But some of these children and grandchildren—what will happen to them?” And the Word came, “Unto all generations. For they have put it into the heart of their children, and in their children’s children, and even those who have been greatly blessed have not had wisdom enough to see their blessing. They, too, shall wander with the mark of Cain on them (Genesis 4:8–16). And people will say, ‘Is this Cain, who slew his brother?’ And the Word shall be, ‘This is of the house of Cain who slew his brother.’ ”
The Procession Of Coffin Bearers
I saw, coming from the east, with the sunrise behind them in the vague dawning light of the day, one long procession after another. Each procession was carrying a coffin, and the robes were black, black with death. And as I looked, I heard strange music. It was music that did not seem to have any rhythm, and it did not seem to have any tune or melody.
I said, “What is this music?” And they said, “This is a special music that God gives us for the dead of the slain of the Lord. Our song is not a song of rejoicing, and our song is not a song of mourning. When we hear this music, our eyes cannot cry, and there is no pity in our heart.”
For God says, “This is the work of My hand, and this is the day of slaughter that I rejoice in; but it is not a day of your personal vengeance that you should rejoice. Nor art thou to have bonds with the iniquitous ones that ye should be sympathetic and mourn. They are the slain of the Lord. Therefore the song comes that has no meaning that you can rejoice in it, nor can you grieve in it, for it is the slain of the Lord in the earth.”
And I could see that the further they marched, the more caskets they carried on their shoulders—and there were many columns. They were stretched out on a prairie as far as the eye could see, one column after another, carrying their caskets. And as they carried them, the caskets shrank and became smaller and smaller.
Then God spoke a Word: “They die the death of the transgressor, but I will that even their death shall die, that there be no remembrance of them in the earth. Their torment shall never be inflicted upon others, for it is returned upon their own soul forever. They have been a torment, and they have victimized. They have not even known how they have made a prey upon the house of God. Therefore the iniquity rests upon them; and God removes all the sting and all the poison.”
The Two Tables
I saw a plain, like a beautiful valley, flat and level, with gracious mountains surrounding it, and water flowed in the stream. I saw two tables spread—not tables as we know them, but spread upon beautiful tablecloths stretched out on the ground.
At one table there were people who were ready to vomit. I looked at them and it seemed as if all God’s people were there. They were nauseated and sick, and they groaned, holding their stomachs, because they held in their hands what looked like beautiful cups, but when you looked inside, you saw that the drink had stained the walls of those silver cups with black. They were very sick.
Then the Lord came, beautiful in glory, and He said, “Come over and drink at My table again.” So they left the table and the cups that were stained black inside. And they crawled, and they walked, and some carried those who could not walk, and they made their way to the other great tablecloth spread upon the beautiful green grass.
The Lord gave them a cup and He said, “You are My disciples. Here, take this cup and drink of it; for have I not promised thee, ‘If thou shalt drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt thee’?” (Mark 16:18.) And as they drank, the deadly thing that had been ministered to them was healed, cured, like some antidote that corrected the evil. And they began to dance and they began to sing.
And so the Lord saith, “I have separated the wheat from the chaff (Luke 3:17; Matthew 13:40–42). I have removed from thee the thorns that did choke thee, and the poison of the asp that did hide in the wall to smite thee when thou knewest not; and I have healed thee. But thine oppressors shall drink of the bitter cup that they have given thee. All the bitterness, which is but a part of the drink that they have devised for you, they shall drink. They shall die in the wormwood and the gall. They shall die in the bitterness.”
Adam’s Family Reunion
I looked, and behold, a big table; it had been placed out in a yard. It must have been a farmhouse or something, because there was an orchard nearby. I looked at the table, and I wondered because it seemed to be so long; and I saw that it was all one table—a very long table. At the table, in country style, there were all the family goodies: pies and cakes, roasts, all kinds of things. There were big crocks of punch, and all about the table the people were sitting.
I saw that all these were those who would know one another after the flesh, and it was like a family reunion. And I said, “What family is this? Are these all related?” The Word came and said, “Yes, this is Adam’s family reunion. They have gathered to commemorate their being a united family; and as they sit there, behold what happens to them.”
I watched how they tried to feed each other; but the more they fed each other, the more they withered. They seemed to grow old while they sat at the table. Then the Lord said, “So in Adam shall all die” (I Corinthians 15:22). I said, “But they were Christians. They were believers.” And God said, “Yes, but they refused the Heavenly Father’s family. They refused the family of Christ in the earth, and they harassed it. They have reverted to the family of Adam. For they have no other family because they have declared no other allegiance. These are they who have placed the Adamic bloodline above the true household of faith. And God has let them wither and die as they attempt to feed themselves. Behold how visible it is that they wither, even as they sit together to feed themselves.”
God’s People Giving Birth
I saw a great group of people. The church was almost full, and there was circle after circle as they were standing and praying. And then I looked at a wonderful thing: I saw the men begin to swell up in their bellies as though they were very pregnant, and the women did too, and the little children did, and they continued to cry unto the Lord and travail.
And then I saw myself coming forth out of each one of them, and I said, “Well, this is what they mean; they are giving birth to the freedom and the liberty of the apostle of the Kingdom.” But it didn’t stop there. Then here came another and then another, and I recognized each one of them. They were the men of the apostolic company; they were the Timothys; they were the ones who had been the shepherds over the flocks. And they seemed to come out like little people standing.
The big circle of people had given birth to all these little people. They didn’t stand over a foot tall apiece. I was just one of those little, small people. And suddenly the whole crowd disappeared. The only thing that was left were these little people. I was one of them. The ministries were others of them.
We began to grow taller and taller, and in just a few instants we were standing there and our bellies began to swell. Pretty soon we looked in wonder, and from us began to come forth people, and we said, “We don’t know where those people disappeared to, but these are the same ones. Now we are giving birth to them.”
It had been a period in which their travail had given birth to the sons, and there was strength to deliver; and the sons had turned and married the spirit that had fathered them and brought them forth. Then they all stood together, and who could say, “You are my father”? Who could say, “You are my son”? For in the travail of the spirit of the Kingdom they had given birth to each other.
As they stood there, a very strange thing happened. They were all suddenly given flags, and they held these flags in their hands. The flags were about two feet by two feet, and half of the flag was black and half of the flag was white, but the white half was at the top.
And the Word came, “My great army is set to create in the earth and bring to an end in the earth, to kill and to make alive, to restore and to end. For the Kingdom of God must destroy that which has been hostile in the times of the Gentiles. It must bring forth in the earth the teachings and the principles of the Kingdom of God. For the islands shall learn His law (Isaiah 42:4, KJV). The hearts of His people shall be filled with peace.”
Be encouraged, for this time of travail, of giving birth, is important. Know also that the dying gasps, the cries of the condemned are very important. Behold, God’s seed shall not inherit with the seed of Satan. There shall not be the intermingling of the seed of Cain who had killed his brother Abel, for God puts an end to the offending thing and that which has made a lie in the earth.
All The Power Of The False Consumed
Another picture came and I said, “I have seen this one before.” It showed a man standing, but it wasn’t just a man. He looked like Moses, and many were standing beside him. As he threw down his staff on the ground, it turned into a serpent. And a great host laughed and they said, “We are Jannes and Jambres, we are Cain and Korah.” And they threw their staves down and they turned into snakes too. And like the story of Moses, all those little snakes were swallowed up. And after they were swallowed up, the snake returned again to the staff in the hand of Moses (Exodus 7:10–12; II Timothy 3:8).
And God said, “I did this before and I do it again. I draw out the way of iniquity, for they shall try to use their anointing and their powers to show that they too have nothing to fear from the man of God. But remember that when the story is finished, they have neither snake nor staff in their hand, and they are speechless. And so the Lord shall prevail. He bringeth the false prophet forth and declareth that in this day he shall be confounded. Though he performs signs and wonders, all that he does shall be self-consuming; and it shall perish until he shall have neither trick nor staff in his hand.”
The Double Agents
And I saw, as it were, a great army that walked. And they had no banner; except a Word kept coming and I said, “How can we identify this army?” And the Word came, “These are those who have followed the Living Word and their war is over the Word. They believe it.”
But I saw another army coming to march against them, and they had all kinds of banners and slogans, though I couldn’t read them. They carried them with shouts of defiance.
As the two armies drew close together, I saw a third company standing in between; and the first company greeted them and they responded and blessed each other. Then this group turned to the second company, to the ones with the banners that you could see were an evil force—many different voices raised against the Word—and they began to greet this middle company the same way, greeting and blessing one another back and forth.
As I looked at that I thought, “How can this be? This company seems to be in the middle; they seem to be neutral.” And the Lord spoke, “These are the double agents. These are those with deceptive tongues. These are the deadly ones, for they seek to remain within the ranks of those who love the Word and to draw life from them. But at the same time their reports to those Judas spirits are giving them ammunition to fight against the saints. All the secrets of the Lord are being revealed unto the armies of Satan.”
As I looked, I began to watch the earth tremble. And then the Lord said, “As I swallowed up Korah, so shall I swallow up the double agents, who for a sympathetic spirit and for praise—or even in the simple spirit of gossip—have been a betrayal to the people of the Lord. For behold, I have already sifted, and now I shall bring judgment on those who walk in duplicity.”
The Foolish Remove Their Gates Of Protection
I saw what looked like a big, beautiful estate. It had walls and shrubs around it, and inside were beautiful trees all laden with fruit.
Somebody came up with a beautiful, beautiful float like you see in a parade, loaded with flowers, and there were many good things in it. They came up and rang a bell and said, “We have to get in. This is a present to you. Underneath this float there is a beautiful car and it is yours.” And the people inside all shouted, “Oh, that’s good.”
Then they saw that they couldn’t get the float through the gate, so they took the gate down and then knocked away a part of the wall. They said, “What does that matter? We can put it back later.” When they did that, then they were able to get the float in.
It was only a little while until a group of real hoodlums came in and began to beat them up, using clubs and knives. They killed some of them; it was a carnage. When this happened, the people began to weep, “We should never have taken our gates off. They were our protection.”
And the Lord said, “You lost your defenses when you no longer had an open gate and an open heart to the Living Word. You wanted to escape persecution. You did not want to stand with the man of God, nor did you want to be true disciples. You wanted all the blessings and did not know that to take the blessings you are not to take the gate down. This was Satan’s trick. You said in your heart, ‘I will be greatly blessed, but I will have this blessing because I’m not going to walk in the Living Word anymore.’ But you lost your defenses, and the enemy came in at will.”
Thy Word, O Lord, is a fortress and a tower to us, and we who love it are protected by Thee. Thy Word is our defense, and Thy Word is our strength.
Then the Word of the Lord came unto me, “Every Judas must be enticed with thirty pieces of silver (Matthew 26:14–15). There will be no betrayal of the Living Word unless it seems to be to the advantage of the one who is doing it. They change masters and say, ‘Lord, we will not serve Thee in Thy Word, but we will serve mammon.’ Thus they do not serve themselves but destroy themselves.”
And the Lord spoke again, “He who abides in the Word that I have spoken is sustained by that Word. But those who do not abide in the Word, but follow after the multitude of the counselors who come as angels of light and ministers of righteousness to deceive (II Corinthians 11:14–15), these are the ones who become the prey. For they have no Word to sustain them; they no longer have that which leads them in the way of victory, in the way of immunity.”
The Good And Bad Fish
And I saw a great net pull in many fishes, and the Spirit spoke again to me saying, “Do you remember the parable of the good and the bad fish?” (Matthew 13:47–50.) And I said, “Lord, they seem to all be alike. How can I tell the good from the bad?” And He said, “Put forth thy hand into the net.” And there were fish that arose and fastened themselves upon my arm and tore out flesh until it was bleeding.
The Lord said, “You can recognize a bad fish, for if its meat does not poison, its mouth will. These fish are set for destruction. With their mouth they do tear at the limbs of God’s people. They do harass and devour. Even in the hour of their death and judgment they would destroy the people of God. Having begun to destroy, they are steadfast in it. Be not deceived about the intention of the bad fish. Even as the faithful are faithful unto death, so these faithfully try to destroy, even unto the hour of their own death.”
Black Clouds From The Mouths Of The False
I saw a crowd of people walking. As they drew near I could not tell who was good or who was bad, who were the anointed of the Lord that were following Him and who were the false ones. As I looked at them I said, “Lord, how should I tell one from another? It’s not like separating sheep from goats; how can I tell?”
And the Lord spoke, “Look carefully and I will give you eyes to see it.” Then I noticed that the crowd of people who were walking began to separate from each other, because some would begin to talk and out of their mouths would roll black clouds. Those clouds would seem to almost smother the other people who were not breathing out black clouds.
As I looked at it I said, “What is this?” And He said, “Out of the abundance of their heart they are speaking forth death and destruction (Matthew 12:34–37). Therefore, hear not their words, lest you perish. It is not enough that you say, ‘I will not believe them.’ Do not even hear them. For their words are more than thoughts of bitterness and rebellion; their words are poison, and death and destruction are in their tongue. When they speak, they speak lies; but they speak it as though it were the truth because they are of their father the devil (John 8:44). They may come as an angel of light, but thou hast eyes to see that which proceedeth forth out of their mouths—death and destruction are in their ways.
“Therefore, let the people of God take warning. Let them draw away from those who would walk with them but walk with a bitter tongue. For thou knowest not the power of the tongue; life and death are found in it (Proverbs 18:21). And thou shalt not go the ways of death because thou hast hearkened unto one who speaks death. Speak life one to another, ye chosen of the Lord.”
As I watched, that crowd did not disappear, but they seemed to separate until those who were speaking formed a black cloud over their own heads. The others were speaking life to one another and their way grew stronger and stronger.
I said, “Lord, what is that black cloud? What is the difference in what they speak?” And the Lord said, “The black cloud is fear that is spoken from the heart of a man. But the others are speaking faith to one another and it is life to them. For the fearful in heart are of those who are unbelieving. They easily yield their tongue to become an instrument of Satan, even as the holy ones, the saints, are given over to a heart filled with love, and their tongues speak by the Holy Spirit.” And I said, “Lord, then it is true: there are the bitter fountains and there are the sweet” (James 3:8–12). And He said, “Yes, and blessed is he that hath a pure stream because he speaketh faith in his heart.”
Neither Control nor Be Controlled
We Do Not Submit to Any Other Than the Lord In Our Brother or sister
We have really had a breakthrough. Today changes everything. We have been in so much change; it is almost impossible to believe it. But it comes back to this: neither control nor be controlled. And it is a whole aspect of this great truth that we have had. We can submit ourselves to one another in Christ in the fear of the Lord (Ephesians 5:21), but we do not submit to any other than the Lord in our brother; it is under Christ. If you don’t see this, you wind up saying, “I’m not going to control anybody; they are under the Lord,” only to find out that they turn back and they begin to control and be a lord over you.
You Carry The Conditioning Of The Past
So much has happened that we need the realization of. It is one thing to be one, but it is another thing to realize that you are one and what that means. You carry with you the conditioning and the thinking from past days when you were striving for unity, but you didn’t really have that oneness in the Lord. You carry with you a conditioning of thinking, and this morning that is going to be exploded. This works in every relationship there is.
A Mingling Of Faith That Creates A Change In Each Other
We started off with a very simple thing: by faith we walked into one another’s hearts, and we said, “You are in my heart.” Then it developed until we realized, “I am not taking you over and you are not taking me over to control me, but it’s a mingling of faith that creates a change in each other.” And so the Word came: “Control or Change?” Or we could have said, “Control or Create.” How did it work? How many would say that you were really aware of the fact that your being in my heart has created something in me that did not exist two weeks ago? You have done something in me! Here is another thing: I know I have done something in you in these last two weeks, because you couldn’t get into my heart and change me without getting it yourself. It slopped over, because oneness is oneness. And in the battle, when you are one, you have won; the battle is all over with.
You Will Never Let Anybody Divide You Again
Everything Satan has done has been designed to try to keep us from being one—to deceive us or to divide us. But it’s over with. You will never let anybody divide you again. We are a family of God—we are so much one. At first you don’t know whether you can trust it or not. Do you ever feel that way? You say, “I’m in his heart, but I’m not going to let all my weight down.” Come on now; you know that’s right. You hardly trust it. “Well, you know, he has let me down before.” But you see, he cannot let you down. You moved in, and you are not going to move out. You are going to live in it.
All I Want To Do Is Create The Change In You
Why do I come into your heart? Why do I bring you into my heart? I’m not going to control you, but you are not coming into my heart to control me either. You are in my heart to change me. I am in your heart to change you.
I am not here to rebuke you, or condemn you, or control you, or make you knuckle under something—that is the furthest thing from my mind. All I want to do is create the change in you so that you don’t stumble anymore. I want to help you. I have no vision of you as you were; I want to bury that in a sea of forgetfulness, because it had limitations to it. But I want to remember your faith, and I want to believe for you now. I want you to do the same thing for me.
Paul Was Always Ready To Reproduce Himself
We are concerned because the Word came that we were to reproduce ourselves. You begin to go about and lay hands on people and commission them so that they are going to do what you did. And then that is where the trouble begins, because often you give a commission to people and you say, “Go and reproduce yourself” It is going to mean a delegation of responsibility, and are they going to do it right?
The whole thing comes right down to an illustration that the Lord gave this morning. We’re going to get into the Scriptures for this. Paul talked about Timothy: “He has my spirit; he knows the things that I have taught. The things you have seen and heard in me, you commit to faithful men who will teach others also” (Philippians 2:19–22; 4:9; II Timothy 2:2). Paul was always ready to reproduce himself—not to reproduce the personality of Paul, but to reproduce that unique ministry of Christ that was in him. I am very much wanting to produce a thousand instruments that can bring in the Kingdom, but I know enough about making tools to know that we don’t use a separate die for each tool. We create one die.
Paul said, “Be followers of me as I also am of Christ” (I Corinthians 11:1, KJV). He wanted the people to be reproduced, but only the Christ in him. If I lay hands on you, I want to produce myself in another as Christ dominates me and is one with me. Consequently, you are going to go, and you are going to produce another me. Paul must have produced several Apostle Paul’s, but they didn’t go about saying, “We are second and third generation Apostle Paul’s.” They were Christ as Christ had revealed and come forth in Paul.
If It Hasn’t Been Produced In You, You Can’t Produce It In Another
The danger is that you try to go and lay hands on people and Christ has not been reproduced in them to the extent that they can reproduce Him. If it hasn’t been produced in you, you can’t reproduce it in another. And this is where impartation has to be so careful.
I’m telling you about what we are facing. We are trying to turn administration over, but we have to be careful that we see that a commission is in one who has had the impartation and the change.
By The Laying On Of Hands, The Work Of The Cross Can Be Done
We were praying over this this morning, and saying, “Well, look how long it has taken to work this out in us.” I don’t think it has to be a long process; I think the time is here when by the laying on of hands, the work of the cross can be done in another person. You can impart to him what has been real to you. If you don’t have it, you can get it; if you’ve got it, you can give it. I believe that I could impart to anyone who would believe God, regardless of his age in Christ; if we just moved in faith, I could impart to you everything that God has ever worked in me in all my whole life. But it has to start by imparting death to you—the work of the cross.
For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves in order that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us, you also joining in helping us through your prayers (I looked up the Greek, and he said, “You work a little together with your prayers”), that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the favor bestowed upon us through the prayers of many. II Corinthians 1:8–11.
“Co-Helpers”
When it comes to the end of this chapter, Paul talks about the very things that God was doing for them. And He winds up with one statement that I think is terrific! Don’t forget that in the first epistle to the Corinthians, he talked about how some were of Apollos, some of Paul, some of Cephas; then he said that that wasn’t good—that was a carnal, immature statement for them to follow or feel (I Corinthians 1:11–12; 3:1–4). But, in II Corinthians 1:24, he went on to say this: Not that we lord it over your faith, but are workers with you for your joy; for in your faith you are standing firm.
We only produce one Lord. He is the Lord. And Paul said, “We are not lords over your faith and joy. We don’t lord it over you.” I think we have missed the whole idea of what an apostolic company was in the New Testament, because I looked at it very carefully, and over and over the phrase comes translated, “fellow-workers, joint-workers.” But the real meaning is “co-helpers” (II Corinthians 8:23; Romans 16:3, 9; Philippians 2:25; 4:3).
I come to help you, but in no way do I control you or lord it over you. I work a miracle in your life. I can change you. I can create you. But when I am finished, I am not the lord over you; He is the Lord over you. At no time do I usurp the place of the Lord. I will neither control you, but neither will I let you be a lord to control me, because then we are denying the one and only Lord, Jesus Christ.
In The Oneness There Is One Lord, One Faith
I don’t think we realize the freedom we have, because we still think in terms of bondage to one another. You’re free! Why are you pushing me through? Is it so that I can turn around and dominate you and be a real master in the Kingdom? No! It is just so that I will take your hand and pull you along with me. What am I serving you for—that I wind up the lord over you? Or do I want to give you such wonderful miracles and gifts and ministries that you turn around and lord it over me?
I Corinthians 12:4–6 says, “There are diversities of gifts, but one Spirit; there are diversities of ministries, but one Lord; there are diversities of mighty operations and energizings, but one God that works it all, in everybody.” This indicates that we have to see that in the oneness there is one Lord, one faith. We serve one Lord (Ephesians 4:4–6). There are not a lot of little lords; but because there is one Lord, and He is Lord of lords and King of kings (Revelation 19:16), we find that we throw off any crowns that we can get; we throw them down at His feet (Revelation 4:9–11).
You Can Submit To Me When You Know That I Am Not Going To Lord It Over You
Do you see it? You can submit to me when you know that I am not going to be a lord over you, that I am going to help you. That perversity is in a little child, that he rebels against his parents because he feels suppressed and restrained. He wants to throw off the chains of his parents, but he winds up making a worse set for himself. But I’m wondering if God isn’t saying to the immature, “Come on, these people aren’t going to dominate you; they are going to help you. Come on, you babes in Christ, let somebody else help you. Come and be teachable. Let them lay hands on you. Let them bless you. They are not going to dominate you.”
I Know How To Create The Sons; I’ve Got It!
I am so excited that I have moved into another realm, and I know how to see this impartation go now. I know how to create the sons. I’ve got a handle on it. I am anointed to do it. I am commissioned to do it. I can make you into what God wants. I’m just going to crawl into your heart, and in the name of the Lord it is going to be done.
Authority Is To Bring People Under The Lordship Of Christ
What is authority? Authority is to bring people under the Lordship of Christ; and when He reigns and His enemies are His footstool, He delivers the Kingdom up to the Father (Psalm 110:1; I Corinthians 15:24–25). Let’s get this idea: in no place does this authority do anything but bring it all back under God. Never once does it make us the lord. We are not the boss; we are laboring with authority—a power of attorney to bring things under Him. We use His name. We use His authority. We use the riches of His grace. We use all of that to bring men under His Lordship. Paul said, “I labor, striving according to His power which labors in me mightily, to present every man perfect in Christ” (Colossians 1:28–29). It was not to bring them under Paul. Do you get that? You’re going to be perfect! Neither control nor be controlled!
Do Not Delegate Your Ministry To Another Until Your Faith Has Recreated Yourself In Him
We may call for two or three people now, and two or three people again, to come over here and just work them over, create them, and send them back to do what they are supposed to do. You say, “Well, they won’t do it like you do it.” Yes, they will, because we are not going to impart to people who don’t do it the way the Lord wants it. You see, God is not going to commission people to go break down a system of communication and ministry that God has ordained. He is just going to see to it that nobody uses the system to further his own interest.
Do not delegate your responsibilities and your burden, your ministry, to another until your faith has recreated yourself in him.
I am going to lay hands on you, but I am going to be sure that when I impart to you, your spirit is going to be faithful in it.
Do Not Demand A Ministry To Reproduce Himself In Another Until You Have Reproduced Yourself In Him
Do not demand a ministry to reproduce himself in another until you have reproduced yourself in him.
I can’t say, “Here, I want you to go reproduce yourself.” I can’t do that to you until I have reproduced myself in you. Then I can help you.
Everything Must Be Reproduced In Its Kind
Everything must be reproduced in its kind (Genesis 1:11–12, 24). Paul said, “Be followers of me as I also am of Christ” (I Corinthians 11:1, KJV). He was saying, “As Christ is reproduced in me, I reproduce Him in you.” And this is Marilyn’s writing: “John Robert Stevens is a reproduction of Christ,” and I say it humbly, “so I do not want Brother Joe to go out and produce three Brother Joes; I want him to go out and produce three John Robert Stevens with the same Spirit of Christ dominating in them.” The mind of Christ must be there—not my mind, or anybody else’s mind, but the thinking of Christ. And he cannot do that until the Christ in me is reproduced in him, with all of the attending things that God has worked in my spirit. This is what you do: “The things that you have seen and heard in me, these things you reproduce and impart to others” (II Timothy 2:2).
The Kingdom Of God Is A Very Tight Kingdom
A Kingdom Proverb: Impartation and the reproduction of yourself does not work until you have had impartation and you have been reproduced into the same image of the ministry that you are going to reproduce again.
This independent action, with every man being a law unto himself and doing that which is right in his own sight, is over with. The Kingdom of God is not like the rule of the judges (Judges 17:6; 21:25). The Kingdom of God is a very tight Kingdom. The Captain runs a tight ship, and everybody is going to do it exactly the way the Captain says—the way the Lord says. Before you go in to take Canaan, remember that there is going to be a sword pointed at your gut. You say, “Who are You?” And He says, “I’m the Captain of the host of Israel” (Joshua 5:13–15). You get it straight in your mind that we are following the Lord. He is the only Lord, and everybody else is just a co-helper together to see His will brought forth in each other.
No Manipulating Strings
It would be very easy to misinterpret this, because people say, “He is trying to produce puppets; he is trying to eliminate the individuality of God’s people.” Nothing could be farther from the truth. You’re trying to impart the Spirit of the Lord that God has given you.
If I were producing puppets, I would control them. Yet the Word is saying, “I will not control you, and I will not be controlled by you; but you be submissive, and I will be submissive; you impart to me, and I will impart to you. But there are no manipulating strings, for there are no controls in this.” A puppet has to have strings, but for us there will be no control.
The Lordship Of Christ Is Always A Threat To The Individual
The Lordship of Christ, no matter how it is presented, is always a threat to the individual, because there is where he has to become the bondservant. That is what it comes down to.
Whatever I Produce Is To Bring You Under The Same Lord
Every ministry of the Spirit must be under the same Lordship of Jesus Christ. So whatever I produce is not to make you a puppet, but it is to bring you, as a bondservant, under the same Lord. I do not want to control you, but I do want to create you and change you until you are as much of a bondservant of Jesus Christ as I am.
The Love Of Christ Controls Us
This is a cross to the human way of thinking, because a human thinks that in order to change a person, you have to control him. It almost sounds contradictory, because your mind can’t comprehend how you can change a person by not controlling him.
But in a sense you do control him. I know this is a paradox. II Corinthians 5:14 says, “Though we thus speak, the love of Christ controls us.” The only control that is executed is that a person loves the Lord so much that he becomes constrained and controlled and motivated by it. That is the only thing—that tremendous force of love that God has for us. We have believed and have come to know the love which God has for us (I John 4:16). We are getting ahold of the secrets behind the secrets behind the secrets.
Impartation Must Come Before Performance
This is the thing that is going to work. Can it work that simply? Yes, because you’re going to relax, and you’re not going to be afraid. You are not going to delegate wrong, you are not going to impart wrong, you are not going to create a lot of things that are going to run off and do their own thing, if you follow this Word.
The test is this: Can we first reproduce Christ in another brother before we commission him or give him responsibility to perform? Impartation must come before we demand performance.
I Do Not Impart To You For You To Impart Yourself To Others
I do not impart to you for you to impart yourself to others, or for you to be the lord over them. That’s what we have to watch. I am not going to commission you to impart yourself until first I have imparted to you so that you will impart Christ in the situation.
When The Lord Alone Controls Us, We Do Not Submit To Controls From Our Brother
When the Lord alone controls us, we do not submit to controls from our brother; we submit only to the life and change that he can work in us by the Lord, and thus we submit to one another in the fear of Christ (Ephesians 5:21).
Let’s get over this idea that we have had, because that is what enabled men to build their kingdoms in the house of God. I wonder what would have happened if the pastors had taught their people: “I’m not going to control you, and you have a right to resist control. I’m here to change you and to live in your heart.” If it had been preached to them then, a lot of the pastors would have never gotten away with building a kingdom for themselves in the name of the Lord. They couldn’t have done it because it would have been heresy—it was anyway, but the people didn’t know how to battle it, because they were taught to be position minded, position-oriented. They insisted that it was a position and God destroyed every bit of it. And the people today—those pastors call them rebels; we call them bondservants of the Lord. Their rebellion was against the lords that were over them, but they became a bondservant to the only true Lord.
Rebels Against The Lords Who Were Not To Be Over Us
The first message that came, was this: “Many lords have had dominion over us, but Thou, O Lord, alone in that day shall be exalted” (Isaiah 26:13; 2:11).
No other lords are going to have dominion. This is what the Lord did: He took all the other little lords away, and one Lord is left. And the other little lords said, “You are rebels.” We are rebels against the lords who were not to be over us, but we are submissive to the Lord who is to rule us.
How many have felt rebellious because you found yourself resisting that kingdom-orientation by leaders? And you just felt rebellious; you felt guilty. Now you realize that you weren’t. It was what God wanted.
The Burden That People Have To Serve The Lord And To Shepherd People As Unto The Lord
I don’t think that I ever demanded control over your life. The only force that I exercised over you was love and faith. And if I told you anything by revelation, it was with a lot of faith in it and you could take it.
The thing that you see now is the burden that people have to serve the Lord and to shepherd people as unto the Lord. Nobody is trying to build a kingdom. What a tremendous step forward we have taken, because this is a step toward the Kingdom, that other kingdoms have to come down; and the Kingdom of God comes where there is just one Lord over it.
Every Commission I Give Will Be To Create A Change, But Never To Control
I refuse to control you, and I refuse to be controlled by you. By faith I will change you, and by faith I will be changed by you.
People are finding that in their submission to the Lord they are going to have a lot of freedom, because they don’t realize how much restraint and bondage was imposed upon them by others, and that positioning has gone. Commission, authority—all of it is here.
I’m not lord over you; I’m a helper of you. I will not control you, but I will commission you—but not so that you can control another, or in turn control me. Every commission I give will be to create a change, but never to control.
The Magna Charta Of The Kingdom
God may have given a system of communication and administration, and we must not destroy the system if it is of God; but we do destroy the control or manipulation within that system. By faith we will not allow anyone working within a God-ordained system, like the New Testament order that has come, to use his function to perpetuate his control or to assume a position over the rest of the Body, or to use his function in the system to perpetuate or fulfill his own interests or personal purposes. That is the Magna Charta of the Kingdom; that is the statement of our freedom.
Do In Me What God Has Ordained You To Do!
I want to fight for this thing with faith for you to create me and change me. My submission is not a passive thing: “Okay, go ahead and bless me.” I demand it! Change me! Create! Do in me what God has ordained you to do! And I don’t accept that that means that you are controlling me; it means that you are creating in me so that I can submit to the Lord, to His control, more. He is going to control me more and more, because you are going to help me be submissive.
For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ. II Corinthians 10:4–5, KJV. It’s not a submission to me and you as persons, but it is unto the Lord.
The Kingdom Of God Is Within You
The greatest mysteries of the Kingdom of God have been revealed whereby we can live in one another’s hearts and thereby bring forth the Kingdom. I wonder if that is what Christ meant when He said, “The Kingdom of God is within you” (Luke 17:21).
A Place Of Ministry Whereby You Get Into One Another’s Hearts
The thing that you do is fight for the system that God gives, and for His way of doing things, but you refuse for anybody to worm into the system until it becomes a position of self-importance. That doesn’t mean that you are not to be faithful in it, but it is not to be distorted back until it is a place of positions. It is a place of ministry whereby you get into one another’s hearts, and you create and you change. In a way it becomes less personal, and in a way it becomes more personal. Some may say, “I will work for the system.” But the friction comes when individuals start fighting for control, or they are jealous, or they are rivals, or they step on another’s toes. Then that is when you have to get together and begin to pray, so the thing gets straightened out.
“This Is The Way It Is Going To Work”
The tree is growing. So the Lord gives a Word that is like a stake, because there are many contrary winds blowing, many influences and impulses of the flesh; and we drive a stake down beside that tree so that we can tie it and it can grow straight, even though there are a lot of adverse winds. We don’t let it bend and destroy itself. So that is what we are doing. The Kingdom is coming; and right even at this early stage, we are driving in the stake, the line, the principle that says, “This is the way it is going to work. We will neither control nor be controlled.”
Changed Into The Same Image From Glory To Glory
That is the greatest step forward we have ever made. But we should add to that, “We will neither control nor be controlled, but we will be changed—all of us—into the same image, from glory to glory” (II Corinthians 3:18).
One More Step Toward The Lordship Of Christ
Paul said, “I’m so concerned lest anybody beguile you from the simplicity that is in Christ” (II Corinthians 11:3). We are going to keep it. The simplicity meant purity too.
Even though it is a little difficult to grasp some of this, it is so simple. It just means one thing; it is the message we have had from the very beginning: the Lordship of Jesus Christ over all of His people. And this is one more step toward the Lordship of Christ. That’s all it is.
Let’s Keep Our Hearts Simple And Pure
One of those visions came to me this morning. I saw a most beautiful land, and I saw that in little pots they were very carefully trying to cultivate exotic flowers; orchids were coming up. And the weeds were just growing everywhere. Then I was shifted to another land; and the orchids were growing like weeds, and the weeds couldn’t grow at all. And the Lord said, “That is what I am doing. I am changing My Kingdom, bringing My Kingdom. My sons will be like plants grown up in their youth (Psalm 144:12), but the weeds will no longer flourish. I remove the tares from the wheat (Matthew 13:24–30, 40–42), and I will bring the purity. And it will grow mightily before the Lord.”
The Word is so rich. We’ve got to keep it simple and pure, and keep our hearts simple and pure. Don’t let the thing get complicated. No excuses—just walk in it. It’s real.
His Order
The Kingdom of God
We must understand that the Kingdom of God is an order—an orderly way of life. It is, in every sense of the word, a kingdom, established by laws and principles that must be followed, or we fail.
Those Who Fulfill The Kingdom Do Not Own, Nor Are They Owned
While we have the Kingdom of God, we have two things: We have the system, the patterns, the divine order that God has revealed to us for a quarter of a century or more out of the Word. Plus we have the fact that those who fulfill it do not own, nor are they owned. They do not control, nor are they controlled. This does not mean that they do not move under authority, but they do not use their authority for any purpose other than to bring about the divine order and the purposes of the Kingdom of God; and they do it in the way, by the principles, that the divine order has established.
The Kingdom of God is divine order under only one Lord.
The Kingdom of God is the authority of true bondservants.
God Never Demanded Submission To Position
Through these years, I watched the pastors label and brand as divisive and rebellious those whom they could not control. With the light of this teaching, we begin to see how they were demanding something that Jesus or the Apostle Paul or the Scriptures never demanded. They were demanding submission to them in a position. And God never demanded submission to position. Even Paul referred to all the apostolic company as “co-helpers with me” (II Corinthians 8:23; Philippians 4:3; Philemon 23–24). Never did he assume a position. Authority is not related to position. In fact, the more position you have, the less the authority you have.
People Cannot Use People
It is no wonder that those who lost their kingdoms blamed the people as being rebellious. The people were not rebellious. They did not have to be controlled by man on a human level and call it religious or spiritual when it was not. People cannot use other people in order to establish themselves as a ministry.
It’s What He Can Give Of Himself
A man who is a minister does not come and say, “Minister to me.” The people may minister to him; but he knows that the Son of Man did not come to be ministered to, but to minister, and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). No man who is called by Christ to be a minister should say anything less. It is not what he can get from the people, in a material sense; it is what he can give to them of himself on a spiritual plane. And so do we call them rebellious who do not submit to a human order? No, we do not call them rebellious. We call the leaders rebellious who do not submit to the divine order and to the principle of God that no one owns anybody and neither do we control, but instead we are anointed by God to change and to bring men into the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:13).
Kingdom Communication, Or Will Communication Be A Kingdom?
Now we must establish a principle that is based upon this inquiry: Kingdom communication, or will communication be a kingdom? We begin to see why God has stressed our communicating and relating for so many years, and we can take it in a simple operation of the apostolic company.
The Kingdom communications or Combat Communications are designed for everybody to get the Word and to rejoice in it. But let’s stop and think about it: Somebody makes a phone call, and he gets the inside track on something, so suddenly he feels very important. He is the bearer of the tidings. Does he then establish his own importance? Does he make his own kingdom out of the communication channel that he controls? If he does, that is wrong.
We have to have a more pure motivation, in which Kingdom communication is to glorify the Lord, and to convey what needs to be known in the Kingdom. But we do not receive a lot of communication in order to make us important, nor can we withhold and be very mysterious about communication that we receive in order that it makes us an exclusive recipient of communication.
I am probably being very vague, but I have watched for such a long time the way people establish themselves by being the key of communication. And the key of true communication is this: It is a Kingdom communication that should be a flow throughout the Body, or throughout the ministries of authority, and should never be a way of establishing a position.
Communication is not a kingdom. Kingdom communication is not a personal kingdom in any way.
Don’t Fear His Order
The Word Never Comes to Beat You Down
There is one big danger with this Word that is coming, and that is that somewhere along the line, this thing hits you so hard that you succumb to the same thing that people have been doing for many years. You feel, “Brother Stevens has got my number, and he is picking on me personally. He’s got me in his sights and he’s just going after me.” I think it is very important for you to know that there is a very studied carefulness on my part.
I don’t listen to things about people. I move by revelation on something that I have had no input in. You didn’t tell me, nobody else told me; it was the Lord. I have never confronted you in bitterness; I have never come down hard on you. You never heard anything but the truth in love (Ephesians 4:14–15). And just because it had a lot of authority behind it did not mean that I was ever using it to beat you.
The Ultimate Of Withdrawal
I think that one of the greatest offenses against the Kingdom of God is for you to hear a truth that can purge you and cleanse you, and for you to take it wrongly and be hit and run from it. It is the ultimate of withdrawal—that you withdraw from a truth that God has used to penetrate your heart. In effect what you are doing is saying, “That Living Word that is sharper than any two-edged sword, and pierces even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit and joints and marrow (Hebrews 4:12), hit me, and I’m going to run from it.”
Love The Living Word Whether It Creates Or Amputates
We ought to be trained by now to love the Living Word; whether it seems to create or whether it seems to amputate, we ought to love it. I think this is more important than many people are realizing. You can get hit by circumstances, get hit by a lot of things, but in the name of heaven, love the truth. Love the Living Word. Love it!
I Am Speaking The Truth In Love
You say, “But the Word hit me so personally.” Does that mean it was not a Living Word? Why, because it has such a personal input in our life, do we suddenly feel, “This is not a Living Word, I can run from this. I can reject this; I can withdraw from this.” No, you can’t. The truth is that nobody is squealing on you. We are speaking the truth in love, but it is not gossip. It is not a tattletale thing, and it is not zeroing in on anybody. This has to be understood. If it isn’t, then you begin to take offense at the Word of God.
Oneness Is Not Exclusiveness; Oneness Never Gives Way To Partiality
In the effort to be one, people have had a desire to be exclusive in their relationship. “I want an exclusive relationship with Brother Stevens.” I don’t know whether you understand this or not. You say, “I would give my life for Brother Stevens; but I would also give my life fighting that I be the one to give it and not anybody else.” This leads us into the wrong attitude. That is too much following man. We could lay down our life for the brethren as unto the Lord (John 15:13), but it cannot be that exclusive thing. Oneness is not exclusiveness. Oneness never gives way to partiality.
Don’t Falsely Accuse People Of Withdrawal
When you reject somebody from your heart, don’t falsely accuse him of withdrawal. I have seen this done to people. They have been accused of withdrawal, and really they have been rejected from the heart of the person who accuses them of withdrawal. “You withdrew from me.” They say, “Yes, but you rejected me from your heart.”
Do Not Condemn Another’s Strength In The Name Of Your Weakness
If you are intimidated by another’s strength, or by his strong desire to serve God, do not condemn his strength in the name of your weakness. Have you noticed how easy it is to reject people who come on strong? When somebody comes up and speaks frankly to you and so forth, you get intimidated. Is all we want just a bunch of Milquetoasts, weak little people in the house of God? No, no, no. Don’t be intimidated. Don’t condemn somebody else’s strength. Welcome it. Give place to it.
Intimidation is the short fuse of rejection. When you become intimidated, it is one step away from rejecting.
The Way We Live In One Another’s Hearts
We build walls against those we fear or we think threaten us. All of this is talking about the way we live in one another’s hearts. And this is the thing that keeps you from living in another person’s heart or having him in your heart. “Well, I have all these wonderful humble brothers in my heart, but I don’t know what to do with that strong one.” Teachers are that way with school. They don’t know how to deal with the kids who come on strong, and they get intimidated by them. They should not be; they’re the teachers.
Don’t raise the drawbridge on the moat because you see a shadow on the horizon.
True Oneness Eliminates Intimidation Unless You Are Afraid Of Yourself
True oneness eliminates intimidation, unless you are afraid of yourself. That’s what a lot of people have—a fear of themselves. When you are really one with your brother, you are not going to be intimidated by him. Your only source of intimidation will be yourself.
Intimidation is an evidence of a lack of confidence in God.
The fear of the Lord eliminates other fears.
There is no love for God without the fear of the Lord.
Whom I Love, I Fear Displeasing
Here is an ironic paradox: Whom I love, I fear displeasing. It is a different kind of fear. That is not an intimidation; that is an encouragement. If I love you, I can fear displeasing you; but it doesn’t mean I am going to be intimidated by you. This is paradoxical.
Being Important Is Not An Exclusive Prerogative Of Only A Few
I think it is very important that there come the time in the Body when everybody feels important. But it’s a strange thing—if you make everybody feel important, some are going to feel rejected. Being important is not an exclusive prerogative of only a few. I know this is true. Watch what the little kids do in the Kingdom school—one or two aggressive ones get in and are a part of everything, and others hold back. And when you give something to one who holds back, then there is a question and a problem that the aggressive one has. Because someone else is made important, does that make you unimportant? We cannot take as rejection the Lord smiling upon anybody. Anybody!
One can’t say to another, “I don’t need you.” You need everybody. God has bestowed such a rich anointing upon each one of us (I Corinthians 12:12–26).
The feeling of freedom and faith for one another is eliminating your intimidation.
Become Persistent
I want the sheep to minister to the shepherd. I want it to be in your realization that we possess each other in that sense—in a relationship in the Lord.
You could be persistent, and it will be the same as if you had a relationship. I think that is important, because right at the present time you are struggling with your relationship. But if you would become persistent, you would function the same as if you had the closest relationship. It would become that.
Even when you question your relationship, still be persistent in faith.
There Is Faith To Persistently Change The Course Of Events
It is one thing to be persistent to receive something; it’s another thing to be persistent to give something. That’s like Elijah: he bowed himself down, and he prayed fervently until he saw the cloud the size of a man’s hand (I Kings 18:42–44). We are not going to stop. We are not going to stop until the showers of blessing come, until the defeat of all the prophets of Baal takes place.
I believe that there is a faith here to persistently change the course of events as Satan has planned them, and to bring it about as a quick work, coming by the righteousness of God in the earth to cut it short, lest the remnant and the elect be oppressed and be destroyed (Matthew 24:22). Do you realize that if I can be destroyed by this, how many others of the faithful will be destroyed?
You Are To Be Free To Minister Before The Face Of God
The Word that I had is that you are not to be limited by time schedules, but you are to be free, even in working in the Word. I know that has been the cry of your heart—to delegate out to others so that you can be free to be led by the Holy Spirit, to be free to minister as a priest before the face of God. All night tonight, I have had a sign on the heel. There is a sign of judgment, and it is not an ethereal thing.
We Create A Visitation For You
We create, with a calculated faith, a visitation from the Lord. We say tonight that when the Lord appears to you, John, the Spirit of the Lord is going to quicken your mortal body; and you’re going to be caught up into a realm and you’re going to be in the next level. We believe it. We create it tonight. We are one. And whatever we bind on earth, it is bound; whatever we loose, it is loosed (Matthew 18:18). And we have the commission and the authority to carry you, John. This is what we are commanding to happen. We take authority over time and we take authority over the thing that Satan would try to do—to destroy the earth before this happens. We judge that. We say this happens first. In fact, we have control—Christ has control through us.
A Vision That Came In Two Parts
I had a vision that went into two parts. One was that Satan had made a great big cloud, and it took the form of an awesome giant with its feet standing upon the earth. The people stood around looking at it; and the more they said, “I’m afraid, I’m afraid,” the more the shadow began to develop into a solid thing. And it became so solid and so strong the more they said, “We’re afraid. We’re afraid of this awesome monster that is suddenly materializing before us.” And the Lord brought His people, and He said to them, “It is materializing with the ingredient of their fears. Speak faith.” They stood and they shouted, “We believe. We believe God”; and it disappeared from its substance. It just became a cloud. And soon the wind began to blow it away.
And the second vision came, very much like it. Here was a beautiful cloud with many colors just floating over God’s people. They looked up and they said, “I wish God would send His rain upon us. We wish God would send His rain upon us.” And the Word of the prophet said, “Ask! Ask!” (Zechariah 10:1.) And as they began to ask, right from their feet, right up through their heads, lightning bolts went up and hit the clouds; and the clouds began to rain a golden rain upon them that was bright and shiny like it was mixed of gold and silver together. It just rained upon them, because they had asked of the Lord and they had created the lightning that had split the clouds and made it rain upon their hearts.
The Weight Of Glory Is Returning Again
It looks like that weight of glory is returning again. I believe it is returning for judgment, returning to minister judgment.
No More Suffering From The Witchcraft
I am standing before God to bring an end to this farce of the Korah ministries and the Cain ministries, and the Balaams, and the witchcrafts, and the Judases. I felt tonight, particularly, that this is the night that God has declared authority over the witchcraft. The Word came to me: “Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live; or thou shalt suffer.” That is a Scripture, except the last part. Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live (Exodus 22:18), or you will suffer at the hands of the witch. So this is an hour that God is saying, “No more suffering from the witchcraft.” He brings it to an end.
I Submit to Your Authority
Philemon Had to Sit at the Feet of Onesimus
In the epistle to Philemon we notice a very distinct difference between Onesimus, the former slave, and Philemon, the master. According to tradition, it was in Philemon’s home that the church met. He was a wealthy man and owned many slaves. Onesimus was one of them and he ran away. At Rome he was converted under the ministry of Paul. Paul sent him back with the epistle of Philemon to entreat that he be received as a brother and not as a slave. I don’t know how it worked out; but I do know that, according to the traditions, Philemon, the master, now had to sit at the feet of Onesimus who became the overseeing elder of the church.
The Roles That You Fill Spiritually May Not Be The Same Roles That You Fill In A Kingdom Business
I think it is very significant that the roles you fill spiritually may not be the same roles that you fill in a Kingdom business. God may raise up some man who is very humble, and he is the janitor in a Kingdom business. But when the church meets, he may move with great authority and speak as a prophet of the Lord. This is raising the issue of how we are going to have to reconcile Kingdom businesses as they exist. It is true that you render the due honor and subservience to those who are masters (Ephesians 6:5–6; Colossians 3:22). You say, “But that was in the Old and the New Testaments when there were actually slaves. It was slavery.” I don’t know what labor is except slavery. It may be voluntary servitude, like the servant who had the awl put through his ear to show that he was dedicated to be a slave of his master, willingly, for the rest of his life (Deuteronomy 15:16–18); but just the same, there is the master and servant role that exists.
We do not know slavery as they knew it in New Testament times, but the basic role of master and servant that existed then still exists when you come to the everyday workday, even in the Kingdom. It is true that these things will change as time goes on, because God leads more and more to an equality that we are to have. But that equality of station and function will have to begin with the spiritual one. For instance, here is a man who is head of a Kingdom business. He knows what he is doing. He has to drive hard; if he is going to bring money in for the Kingdom of God, it is going to have to be by several things. So carefully he sends these ministries under him to work, and they work hard and sweat it out; but while they are sweating it out, there is also something else taking place. He is diligent as an overseer of them. However, when the day ends and they go to meet together, it may be an entirely different thing. Then the role of master and slave ends, and the role of brethren together in the Kingdom has to begin. And it is at this point that a person tends to take the authority he has in one area and switch it to another. And that can be a dangerous thing.
Samuel Was The Prophet And Priest, And Into That Place Saul Could Not Intrude
In the Old Testament, when King Saul saw the people departing from him he said, “I pushed myself because the people were leaving, and I usurped the office of a priest and I made the sacrifice.” Samuel told Saul, “Now God has rent the Kingdom from you” (I Samuel 13:8–14; 15:28). The priesthood had one kind of authority which was spiritual; and Saul had another kind of authority which, while it had spiritual overtones, was dealing entirely with another realm of the people’s lives. This is important. Samuel was always the prophet and priest; and into that place Saul could not intrude, although the anointing came upon him and he danced and prophesied and they said, “Is Saul also one of the prophets?” (I Samuel 10:10–12.) But he was not. And he did not change from one level to another in his entire life. So it is very necessary for us to understand the difference between this.
We Do Not Own Nor Do We Control
In the New Testament there were certain relationships that existed of one nature, and at the same time there would be a relationship that existed in another. And so it is in the Kingdom of God. We are a Kingdom of priests unto the Lord (Exodus 19:6; Revelation 5:10). And in that, we do not own, nor do we control, nor do we dominate, nor do we manipulate, but the whole force is love; it must be love.
Enough Love To Work A Miracle
If you are going to confront a brother or if you are frustrated by a problem, you have no right to solve it until you have enough love that generates the faith to change it. It cannot be on a basis of misgiving; it cannot be on a basis of ill feeling in any way. There must be enough love to work a miracle, or you have no right to your feelings or opinions.
More Love To Function
You cannot hit a new level without realizing your need of enough love to function on that level. When you come into new authority or a new place in God, immediately you will find yourself praying for more love in order to cope, or even to function, in that realm.
There Is No Function In The House Of God But Serving
In the house of God nobody owns you and nobody is the lord but the Lord Himself. Everyone who is there is there to serve you, and you are there to serve. There is no function in the house of God but serving. There are no masters to be served.
There is no one who says, “Here am I; you serve me and serve my interests.” Everybody has to come to say, “I come to serve.” The minister comes and he says, “I come to be a servant of all” (Mark 9:35; 10:44). And the people come and say, “We come to serve you.” Everybody says to one another, “We come to serve you.” This can be the only way the Kingdom of God functions.
All Sheep Together Under The Great Shepherd
We can have divine order flowing in the house of God, so that we have a number of functions that are the outgrowth or, we might say, the execution of the purposes of the Kingdom of God. For instance, we have a printing company that is printing the Word. We have a recording company that is recording the Word. We have those who are duplicating it and sending it out, a shipping department and so forth. Even in that, though, you must understand that there must be a blending of the same principles we are talking about. In one sense there should be every diligence and faithfulness to be there and to perform the function as though you were a slave to it. But by the same token, there must be the realization that on a spiritual level you are all sheep together under the Great Shepherd. And you love each other and you are there to serve each other.
All Of The Differences That Have Been Among Us Disappear
We defend the divine order and the system that God has given, and we have great respect for it. We do not bypass another person’s authority or his commission; we look for confirmation. But at the same time we have to understand that when we come into one another’s hearts we are brethren; and it must be there that all of the differences that have been among us disappear, and we are in one another’s hearts to change one another.
Each Of Us Has A Designated Realm To Move In And An Authority That Is Commensurate To That Commission
In I Corinthians 12:4–6 it talks about how there are different gifts, but it is the same Spirit that works in every gift, though it is distinct. And there are different ministers or ways of ministering, but it is the same Lord that is over every minister, meaning the Lord Jesus Christ. Then we come up to the third great thing: there are differences of operations or energizings, functions in the Kingdom, but it is the same God that works or energizes everybody who functions. We could spend a lot of time trying to explain that, but one thing is clear in it: there are a lot of different ministries, and each of them has an authority and a responsibility to move in that gift. You are told to function in that gift, not to neglect it (I Timothy 4:14–15). By the same token, there are different ways of operating.
Each of us has a designated realm to move in and the authority that is commensurate and appropriate to that commission that we have.
There Is Nothing Greater Than Our Learning How To Submit To One Another
There is probably nothing greater than our learning how to submit to one another as unto the Lord (Ephesians 5:21–22), because we submit to what the Lord has endowed, designated, given authority and commissioned each one to perform. We are very careful to see that; and let each ministry of such authority also be very careful that he does not assume an area of authority that he does not have.
The Deacon Has An Authority That Can Call The Elder Right Down To Do The Menial Tasks
The ministry of a deacon demands submission from everyone in the church along a certain level. They are very, very spiritual ministries, but they bring people in as servants of the people; and as servants of the people they have the prerogative and the anointing to cause everybody else to be servants. They can come and say, “Here, why don’t you do this? Why don’t you function in this way?” And because they have that anointing, the people seem to respond to it, and that is good.
The Deacon Has To Stand Up And Become A Prophet Of God Because He Is Directed To Be So
In the same way, when that spiritual ministry of an elder begins to move and there is a need of more confirming voices to prophesy and to move, he can say, “Here, it’s time now not to just serve soup at the daily ministration, but you’ve got to have a Word from God.” So the elder says to the deacon, “Get busy. Go do it.” And the deacon has to stand up and become virtually a prophet of God because he is directed to be so.
There Has To Be A Mutual Submission
What is the final conclusion to all of this? We find ourselves saying to our brother, “I submit to your authority.” And our brother says to us, “I submit, too, to your authority.” I go to the deacon in the church who has such a responsibility for the house of God, and I say, “I submit to your authority; let the Lord lead you.” And the deacon says to me, “I submit to your authority, only tell me what the Word of the Lord would be for me to do.” There has to be in this a mutual submission.
I think that it is good for a family to see this, for the husband to recognize that there could be a spiritual authority in his wife. She may be a shepherd of the flock more than he is. She may be able to teach the Word of God to other sisters and other brothers. He can’t say, “You be submissive to me; you can’t do that.” He has to submit to the commission and the authority that is designated in his wife. And the wife comes up to her husband and says, “I submit to you. You’re my spiritual head.” But she does not say, “I have a ministry and I have a place,” and begin to fight the authority of her husband. She submits to it.
There Is No Position, But Still There Is Authority When It Comes To Spiritual Things
Don’t you understand that you can have authority and still be under authority? That was the greatest faith that ever happened in all of Israel. The centurion said, “Just speak the Word only. For I am a man under authority and I say to somebody who is under me, ‘You do this; do that,’ and he does it. And all You have to do is speak the Word only.” The Lord marveled and He said, “I have not seen such faith, no, not in all Israel.” He just spoke the Word and the man’s servant was healed (Matthew 8:5–13).
You are not being put down because you submit to someone else who has an authority designated by the Lord, no matter how humble he may be. And you are not exalted to a position when God demands them to be submissive to you, no matter how great your ministry may be. There is no position, but still there is authority when we come to the spiritual things. Each has his own authority and level of function, and thereunto we are submissive in the name of the Lord.
If there is a title that could be given to this Word it would be a prayer: “Before God and before all our brothers, I submit to your authority.”
You Have A Word And A Commission To Bring Me Forth, And I Am Submissive To That
I want you to realize something: You’re going to be submissive to me. But I want you to realize something else: You have a Word and a commission to bring me forth, and you are going to take that seriously as a mantle of authority; and I am totally submissive to that! This is the first time that I have ever seen anything that demanded such mutual submission to one another. I’m submitting to you to do what God called you to do, and we are going to walk in it.
This Word Gives Us The Mechanics Of The Kingdom Of God Functioning In The Earth
This Word is telling us how it works. We are getting more than guidelines; we are getting the mechanics of the greater works. We are getting the mechanics of doing the will of God in the earth. We are getting the mechanics of the Kingdom of God functioning effectively in the earth!
The Greatest Strength We Minister To Each Other
We don’t realize that our submission to one another’s authority is the greatest strength we minister to each other.
The Guidelines For Kingdom Order
You spoke that there was Church order, then there was disorder, and now there is the Kingdom order; and this is exactly where we are. These are the guidelines for Kingdom order that we have never seen before in our lives. And we had to go through the process of losing position and seeing all of that annihilated, because this is the next step for us to move into.
I Move Into Your Heart To Submit To You
I do not move into your heart to make it a throne to rule over you. I move into your heart to submit to you.
When We Submit To Each Other It Is Always Perfect
There is no greater thing that a spiritual father has than when his sons come and minister to him. You say, “But we can’t minister to you on the same level that you can minister.” You would be surprised. When we submit to each other, it is always perfect when every man moves with faith in the authority that God has given him; it is all the same thing.
Two Leadings
For you to control your day is to have God give you two leadings. One is the leading which sets the course for the day that you can follow it effectively. The second is that leading which comes at each unsuspected or unanticipated incident, and you are still in control.
You Have To Come Into That Realm Where You Are Led By The Spirit
To control your day you have to come into that realm—and it can be imparted to you—where you are led by the Spirit. You are led with the overall picture; you know where you are going that day, but you are also led by the Spirit with each little turn in the road that comes up so that you know what you are to do.
When The Battle Comes, If You Are One You Have Won
This Word puts it all together. It’s going to make marriages work. It’s going to make everything work. For the first time, the husband can’t say, “Well. I’m the husband; be submissive to me,” because there are many levels of authority and many diversities in the operations of God. We look to where God is speaking; and if God raises up a little child in our midst with the Word of God, we still submit to the Word of God. We’ve got to have that faith. The way that we are coming out in victory is one more evidence of the oneness that is there. When the battle comes, if you are one you have won.
As I Submit To Your Ministry To Me, You Are Delivered
Your deliverance is found as I submit to your ministry. I have not been led to tackle your problems; I have only been led in the Spirit of the Lord to create your ministry. And as I submit to your ministry to me, you are delivered.
With Authority and Under Authority
Come into My Heart and We Will Be Submissive To One Another’s Ministry
When the Lord tells us to be submissive one to another as unto the Lord (Ephesians 5:21–22), we don’t know yet what that fully means, but we are finding out very fast. I will explain why with a personal illustration. Marilyn has an anointing to work in the Word; it has been her life’s devotion, a vision to see this Word sent forth. I have an anointing and a devotion to bring the Word forth and she has to work in it. Now you may not think that is two different things, but it is; it is two different things. She is submissive to me to see that there are records and that the Word is recorded right. And as time goes on with this, it becomes very plain that the Word has been preserved because she is submissive to the one who brings forth the Word and is like a servant to see it happen. But now here is the thing: Because she is anointed and has authority in that way, I find myself becoming submissive, very much in the will of God, to her ministry in the Word.
That may not mean much to you; but until this happens to you, you will never know that this is the way you live in one another’s hearts. You don’t say, “Come into my heart and be submissive to my ministry.” You say, “Come into my heart and we will be submissive to one another’s ministry.”
If There Is A Commission That Is Specific, It Requires That Everyone Be Submissive To It
If there is a deacon in the church—and we know that the word “deacon” means “servant”; we understand that—he is a servant to the church. However, he still is a servant with authority that he can come and say, “We have to clean the church for Sunday, or for the Sabbath.” When he says that, someone may say, “I can’t do that because I’m an elder. I can’t do that because I’m a prophet. I have other things to do, because I have a ‘spiritual ministry.’ ” Wait a minute—I see places in the Scriptures where Paul commanded even those who were overseers to be submissive to those who were deaconesses, and to help these sisters in anything they required (Romans 16:1–2; Philippians 4:3).
Now, what does this mean? This is opening up a whole new realm. An elder may say, “I don’t have to clean the church because I’m an elder; I minister to the spiritual things.” Well, what about the deacons in the New Testament who served the widows? The time came when they went forth and did signs and wonders (Acts 6:1–10; 8:5–40). Authority can manifest itself in any area that is needed; but if there is a commission that is specified, it requires that everyone be submissive to it. if someone would come up to me and say, “We have tried to do this work and there is nobody to do it; would you help us?” I would be submissive. But I have seen elders who say, “That is deacon’s work; that’s not my work.” They are missing it. It should be both ways—the elders should come and say to the deacons, “Look, we need confirming words; we need confirmation in what we prophesy. Get in and fulfill it.” And because there is authority over them, they can do anything that is required of them. This becomes very, very important.
There Are Different Types Of Authority
I want you to be aware of this one thing, that there are different types of authority. One illustration is with Philemon. Philemon was a rich man who lived in Asia Minor, and he had a servant by the name of Onesimus. Onesimus ran away; we don’t know why, but he was a runaway slave in Rome when Paul ministered to him and he became a Christian. The book of Philemon is written as Paul sends a runaway slave back to his master. As you read the book, which is only one small chapter long, you realize that Paul is using his authority over Philemon to ask him to use his authority over Onesimus in mercy. Different types of authority are being manifested.
Tradition tells us Onesimus went back and became the overseeing elder, or bishop, of the church that was in the home of Philemon. Philemon had been the master over Onesimus in that very house where now he must be submissive to the spiritual ministry of Onesimus, his former slave. There are two kinds of authority. If you read the Scriptures, it talks about a slave and says, “Be submissive to your master” (Colossians 3:22). That is one kind of authority. But it also does not exclude that when you come to the house of God, that slave may be the apostle to whom you must submit.
When You Are In One Another’s Hearts, There Is Not One That Owns Another
A man can be your boss at business, and you give to him due service (Ephesians 6:5–8); but when you walk out the door, you know that he does not own you. You have submitted to what he asked you to do; but when you come to the house of God, you are free. You are absolutely able to move because you are in one another’s hearts. And when you are in one another’s hearts, there is not one who owns another or controls another; they just work in love to change one another.
“Say To One Another, “I Submit To Your Authority”
This is going to solve the problems of Kingdom businesses. If there is a Kingdom business, the man can say, “I’m the head of the Kingdom business; I’m the boss. We’ve got to produce.” You have to listen to what he says; but when you go to meet that night in the house of God and he stands up and says, “You do this and that,” you say, “Wait, we get confirmation; we are all on the same level here.” You have to understand that there is authority. And the cry of your heart is, “I submit to your authority.” You say that to one another: “I submit to your authority.” This does not put you down.
“When I Come To The House Of God, I Am A Free Man; I Can Move In Authority”
When you go to the house of God you realize, “Okay, I did what I had to do to put bread and butter on the table for my family, but my boss does not own me. I submit to what I have to submit to; but when I come to the house of God, I am a free man, and I can move in authority as the Lord wants to lay it upon me.”
We Respect And Submit To That Distinctive Authority Which Rests Upon Another
There are diversities of gifts, but one spirit; diversities of ministries, but one Lord; diversities of operations, but it is the same God who energizes all (I Corinthians 12:4–6). This means that we have come to the place where there are going to be different designations of authority, and we will have to learn how to be submissive to them. I have to be submissive to you, to what God has called you to do; and you have to be submissive to me. We cannot truly live in one another’s hearts unless we learn that we respect and submit to that distinctive, different, individual anointing, commission, and authority that rests upon another person.
This has been the great trouble in our own churches; people haven’t seen that. One man says, “Everybody submits to me”; but he does not submit to the commission and the authority over another. That creates position.
A Mutual Submission
The only way you eliminate position is by a mutual submission. Then we are all free. Do you love me? I love you. You’re in my heart. You say, “John, we really submit to you.” I’ve got news for you: I submit to you, because you are doing for me what I cannot do for myself. You are commissioned and you have authority to do it. And I will be able to do for you what you cannot do for yourself. How we need one another! We dare not draw back from this mutual submission.